AWB Chapter 430 Who will investigate this case?
Chapter 430 Who will investigate this case?
Although Emperor Wenjing had agreed to thoroughly investigate the case, the tricky part was deciding who should be in charge of it.
It is absolutely impossible to rely on the officials of the Ministry of Justice and the Court of Judicial Review at present.
Most of them belonged to the Right Party faction and were also loyal to the King of Qi.
Li Chongyi supports the Qi King's succession to the throne, and the Qi King also needs Li Chongyi's assistance. At this critical juncture, the Qi King will definitely try his best to protect Li Chongyi, and these officials will naturally serve him.
The senior censors of the Censorate, though possessing a strong sense of justice, were unfortunately powerless to act.
They don't have the energy to deal with the right-wing faction.
Some officials from humble backgrounds looked at Song Bingzhi kneeling in the hall, their hearts heavy.
They simply couldn't understand why Song Bingzhi would suddenly impeach the Right Chancellor.
In their view, this decision was clearly ill-timed, akin to throwing an egg against a rock, and courting certain death.
King Qi's gaze met Li Chongyi's without making a sound. The two exchanged a knowing glance before casually looking away.
As King Qi turned his gaze, he inadvertently met King Chen's eyes.
His eyes paused.
Prince Chen's body is so frail; every time I look at him, I feel like he's not far from death, yet he always manages to live a good life.
The two locked eyes, and Prince Chen gently raised the corners of his mouth, revealing a meaningful smile.
The smile looked somewhat eerie on his slightly pale face.
King Qi frowned, feeling inexplicably uneasy.
What is Li Yuanhe laughing at? Why can he still laugh?
Since Yun Shang's death, Prince Chen has returned to his previous low-key lifestyle, staying deep within his palace and rarely venturing out.
But this smile made King Qi vaguely feel that he might have underestimated Li Yuanhe.
His gaze darkened.
Was Li Yuanhe secretly plotting all along? What exactly is he planning...?
Emperor Wenjing sat on the dragon throne, looking at the officials in the hall, feeling extremely annoyed.
In the vast imperial court, he couldn't find a single person he could completely trust and who was capable of thoroughly investigating the case.
His gaze slowly swept across the ministers in the hall, passing over each face, but all he saw were expressions of either evasion or silence.
Clearly, these people all understood that investigating Li Chongyi was tantamount to gambling with their lives.
But none of them were willing to take that risk.
In such a vast imperial court, not a few loyal and righteous ministers could be found.
A wave of sorrow washed over Emperor Wenjing, and his expression grew increasingly grim.
Li Chongyi observed the emperor discreetly, his gaze intentionally or unintentionally sweeping over the positions of the Minister of Justice and the Chief Justice of the Court of Judicial Review.
The next moment, the Minister of Justice and the Chief Justice of the Court of Judicial Review understood each other and stepped forward at the same time.
He bowed respectfully to Emperor Wenjing at the head of the table and said, "Your Majesty, I am willing to investigate this matter." "I am also willing."
"Your Majesty, I am willing to investigate this matter."
"I am willing to do the same."
Emperor Wenjing's sharp gaze fell on the two men. His hand on the armrest tightened slightly, and his lips pressed into a straight line. He asked in a cold voice, "How do you plan to investigate?"
The Minister of Justice pondered for a moment and said respectfully, "The matter of Censor Song's impeachment involves old cases from many years ago, which are extremely difficult to investigate. I beg Your Majesty to give me some time."
The Minister of the Court of Judicial Review also chimed in, "I second that opinion."
"Your Majesty, during this period, we will probably need the full cooperation of Censor Song. In order to prevent Censor Song from being used by others to frame Prime Minister Li, I ask Your Majesty to allow the Court of Judicial Review to thoroughly investigate Censor Song's home first."
Upon hearing this, a flash of anger crossed Emperor Wenjing's eyes.
How could he not understand what the two were thinking?
They were merely using the pretext of investigating the case to buy time and, incidentally, to pin a baseless accusation on Song Bingzhi in order to exonerate Li Chongyi.
Most of the court officials also understood the unspoken meaning behind the two men's words: as long as the emperor agreed, once Song Bingzhi left the palace, he would definitely be subjected to all sorts of difficulties by them.
The case was initiated by Song Bingzhi. If he suddenly withdraws the case later, it will be left unresolved.
However, in terms of duties and procedures, this case should have been handed over to the Ministry of Justice and the Court of Judicial Review for investigation.
If Yun Shang were still alive, the case could have been handed over to him as the Inspector General. However, Yun Shang is dead, and there is no Inspector General now. It seems that the case can only be handed over to the Ministry of Justice and the Court of Judicial Review.
Emperor Wenjing frowned deeply and remained silent for a long time.
The hall fell silent for a moment, each person harboring their own secret thoughts.
The Minister of Justice and the Chief Justice of the Court of Judicial Review exchanged a glance and urged in unison, "We beg Your Majesty's permission!"
Emperor Wenjing gripped the dragon head on the armrest, slowly closed his eyes, sighed inwardly, and said in a deep voice, "In that case, this case shall be handed over to..."
"emperor!"
Just then, a loud shout suddenly came from outside the hall.
Emperor Wenjing paused, then suddenly looked up at the outside of the hall, a complex and dark look flashing in his eyes.
When King Qi heard the voice, he felt that it sounded vaguely familiar, and his brow twitched.
The ministers also looked in the direction of the sound and saw a young official in a scarlet court robe slowly walking in from outside the hall. He walked steadily, with a cold expression, and exuded an aura of authority without anger.
As he approached, the officials gradually saw his face clearly and couldn't help but gasp in astonishment!
"Yun...Yun Shang?!"
"Why is it him?"
"Is he a human or a ghost?!"
"Isn't Yun Shang already dead?"
“I went to pay my respects that day and saw him lying in the coffin with my own eyes…”
"Could he have faked his death?"
"This is the crime of deceiving the emperor!"
Upon hearing this, the officials of the right wing, as if they had seized upon some enormous incriminating evidence, eagerly began to speak one after another without waiting for Li Chongyi's signal.
"Your Majesty, Yun Shang has deceived the Emperor by faking his death to fool everyone. This is a grave crime and must be punished!"
"Yes, Your Majesty. Yun Shang's actions show a utter disregard for the dignity of the imperial family. If he is not severely punished, where will the discipline of the court be in the future?"
However, Yun Shang remained calm in the face of these officials' attacks, as if everything was within his expectations.
He walked steadily to the center of the hall without haste, looked up and met Emperor Wenjing's gaze. Then, he knelt down slowly, lifting his robe, and said in a clear, cold voice, word by word, "Your Majesty, I am fortunate to have fulfilled my mission."
As soon as these words were spoken, some of the officials in the hall gasped.
What does "云觞" mean?
What does it mean that he "luckily fulfilled his mission"?
Is it...
Everyone was secretly surprised when they saw Emperor Wenjing suddenly stand up, laugh loudly, and walk quickly down the high platform to personally help Yun Shang, who was kneeling, up.
"Excellent, excellent, Minister Yun truly lives up to my expectations; you have not disappointed me!"
King Qi's heart pounded.
Yun Shang faked his death!
He faked his death in order to go from the light to the dark and secretly investigate the crimes of the aristocratic families. What the emperor meant by this was that he knew from the beginning that Yun Shang had faked his death!
King Qi clenched his fists tightly. At this moment, he finally understood the meaning behind Li Yuanhe's smile just now!
He fell into a trap!
Yun Shang's faked death was orchestrated by Emperor Wenjing, and he himself was kept in the dark for so long!
Meanwhile, the officials from the right wing were not much better looking either.
The moment they saw Yun Shang, they had a bad feeling.
Yun Shang was a huge threat to them, and they instinctively used the charge of faking his death and deceiving the emperor to kill him again. But they never expected that the emperor knew about it!